M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Chapter 10
1 (A)At that time the Lord said to me, Cut two stone tablets like the first ones(B) and come up the mountain to me. Also make an ark out of wood. 2 I will write upon the tablets the words that were on the tablets that you broke, and you shall place them in the ark. 3 So I made an ark of acacia wood, and cut two stone tablets like the first ones, and went up the mountain with the two tablets in my hand.(C) 4 (D)The Lord then wrote on the tablets, as he had written before, the ten words[a] that the Lord had spoken to you on the mountain from the midst of the fire on the day of the assembly; and the Lord gave them to me. 5 Then I turned and came down from the mountain, and placed the tablets in the ark I had made.(E) There they have remained, as the Lord commanded me.
6 (F)The Israelites set out from Beeroth Bene-jaakan for Moserah; Aaron died there and was buried. His son Eleazar succeeded him as priest.(G) 7 From there they set out for Gudgodah, and from Gudgodah for Jotbathah, a region where there is water in the wadies. 8 At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord,(H) to stand before the Lord to minister to him, and to bless in his name, as they have done to this day. 9 For this reason, Levi has no hereditary portion with his relatives;(I) the Lord himself is his portion, as the Lord, your God, promised him.
10 Meanwhile I stayed on the mountain as I did before, forty days and forty nights, and once again the Lord listened to me. The Lord was unwilling to destroy you. 11 The Lord said to me, Go now and set out at the head of the people,(J) that they may enter in and possess the land that I swore to their ancestors I would give them.
The Lord’s Majesty and Compassion. 12 (K)Now, therefore, Israel, what does the Lord, your God, ask of you but to fear the Lord, your God, to follow in all his ways, to love and serve the Lord, your God, with your whole heart and with your whole being,(L) 13 to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord that I am commanding you today for your own well-being?(M) 14 Look, the heavens, even the highest heavens, belong to the Lord, your God, as well as the earth and everything on it.(N) 15 Yet only on your ancestors did the Lord set his heart to love them. He chose you, their descendants, from all the peoples, as it is today.(O) 16 Circumcise therefore the foreskins of your hearts,[b] and be stiff-necked no longer. 17 For the Lord, your God, is the God of gods, the Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who has no favorites, accepts no bribes,(P) 18 who executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and loves the resident alien, giving them food and clothing.(Q) 19 So you too should love the resident alien, for that is what you were in the land of Egypt.(R) 20 The Lord, your God, shall you fear, and him shall you serve; to him hold fast and by his name shall you swear.(S) 21 He is your praise; he is your God, who has done for you those great and awesome things that your own eyes have seen.(T) 22 Seventy strong your ancestors went down to Egypt,(U) and now the Lord, your God, has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven.
Psalm 94[a]
A Prayer for Deliverance from the Wicked
I
1 Lord, avenging God,
avenging God, shine forth!(A)
2 Rise up, O judge of the earth;
give the proud what they deserve!(B)
II
3 How long, Lord, shall the wicked,
how long shall the wicked glory?(C)
4 How long will they mouth haughty speeches,
go on boasting, all these evildoers?(D)
5 They crush your people, Lord,
torment your very own.
6 They kill the widow and alien;
the orphan they murder.(E)
7 They say, “The Lord does not see;
the God of Jacob takes no notice.”(F)
III
8 Understand, you stupid people!
You fools, when will you be wise?(G)
9 Does the one who shaped the ear not hear?
The one who formed the eye not see?(H)
10 Does the one who guides nations not rebuke?
The one who teaches man not have knowledge?
11 The Lord knows the plans of man;
they are like a fleeting breath.(I)
IV
12 Blessed the one whom you guide, Lord,(J)
whom you teach by your instruction,
13 To give rest from evil days,
while a pit is being dug for the wicked.
14 For the Lord will not forsake his people,
nor abandon his inheritance.(K)
15 Judgment shall again be just,
and all the upright of heart will follow it.
V
16 Who will rise up for me against the wicked?
Who will stand up for me against evildoers?
17 If the Lord were not my help,
I would long have been silent in the grave.(L)
18 When I say, “My foot is slipping,”
your mercy, Lord, holds me up.(M)
19 When cares increase within me,
your comfort gives me joy.
VI
20 Can unjust judges be your allies,
those who create burdens by decree,
21 Those who conspire against the just
and condemn the innocent to death?
22 No, the Lord is my secure height,
my God, my rock of refuge,
23 (N)Who will turn back their evil upon them(O)
and destroy them for their wickedness.
Surely the Lord our God will destroy them!
Chapter 38
Sickness and Recovery of Hezekiah. 1 [a]In those days,[b] when Hezekiah was mortally ill, the prophet Isaiah, son of Amoz, came and said to him: “Thus says the Lord: Put your house in order, for you are about to die; you shall not recover.”(A) 2 Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord:
3 “Ah, Lord, remember how faithfully and wholeheartedly I conducted myself in your presence, doing what was good in your sight!” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.(B)
4 Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: 5 Go, tell Hezekiah:[c] Thus says the Lord, the God of your father David: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Now I will add fifteen years to your life. 6 I will rescue you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; I will be a shield to this city.(C)
7 This will be the sign for you from the Lord that the Lord will carry out the word he has spoken: 8 See, I will make the shadow cast by the sun on the stairway to the terrace of Ahaz[d] go back the ten steps it has advanced. So the sun came back the ten steps it had advanced.(D)
Hezekiah’s Hymn of Thanksgiving. 9 The song of Hezekiah, king of Judah, after he had been sick and had recovered from his illness:
10 In the noontime of life[e] I said,
I must depart!
To the gates of Sheol I have been consigned
for the rest of my years.(E)
11 I said, I shall see the Lord[f] no more
in the land of the living.
Nor look on any mortals
among those who dwell in the world.
12 My dwelling, like a shepherd’s tent,
is struck down and borne away from me;
You have folded up my life, like a weaver
who severs me from the last thread.[g](F)
From morning to night you make an end of me;
13 I cry out even until the dawn.
Like a lion he breaks all my bones;
from morning to night you make an end of me.(G)
14 Like a swallow I chirp;
I moan like a dove.
My eyes grow weary looking heavenward:
Lord, I am overwhelmed; go security for me!
15 [h]What am I to say or tell him?
He is the one who has done it!
All my sleep has fled,
because of the bitterness of my soul.
16 Those live whom the Lord protects;
yours is the life of my spirit.
You have given me health and restored my life!
17 Peace in place of bitterness!
You have preserved my life
from the pit of destruction;
Behind your back
you cast all my sins.[i]
18 [j]For it is not Sheol that gives you thanks,
nor death that praises you;
Neither do those who go down into the pit
await your kindness.(H)
19 The living, the living give you thanks,
as I do today.
Parents declare to their children,
O God, your faithfulness.
20 The Lord is there to save us.
We shall play our music
In the house of the Lord
all the days of our life.
21 [k]Then Isaiah said, “Bring a poultice of figs and apply it to the boil for his recovery.” 22 Hezekiah asked, “What is the sign that I shall go up to the house of the Lord?”
Chapter 8[a]
The Seven Trumpets. 1 When he broke open the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven[b] for about half an hour.(A) 2 And I saw that the seven angels who stood before God were given seven trumpets.(B)
The Gold Censer. 3 Another angel came and stood at the altar,[c] holding a gold censer. He was given a great quantity of incense to offer, along with the prayers of all the holy ones, on the gold altar that was before the throne.(C) 4 The smoke of the incense along with the prayers of the holy ones went up before God from the hand of the angel. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with burning coals from the altar, and hurled it down to the earth. There were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.(D)
The First Four Trumpets. 6 The seven angels who were holding the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.(E)
7 When the first one blew his trumpet, there came hail and fire mixed with blood, which was hurled down to the earth. A third of the land was burned up, along with a third of the trees and all green grass.[d]
8 [e]When the second angel blew his trumpet, something like a large burning mountain was hurled into the sea. A third of the sea turned to blood,(F) 9 a third of the creatures living in the sea[f] died, and a third of the ships were wrecked.
10 When the third angel blew his trumpet, a large star burning like a torch fell from the sky. It fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water.(G) 11 The star was called “Wormwood,”[g] and a third of all the water turned to wormwood. Many people died from this water, because it was made bitter.(H)
12 When the fourth angel blew his trumpet, a third of the sun, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars were struck, so that a third of them became dark. The day lost its light for a third of the time, as did the night.(I)
13 Then I looked again and heard an eagle flying high overhead cry out in a loud voice, “Woe! Woe! Woe[h] to the inhabitants of the earth from the rest of the trumpet blasts that the three angels are about to blow!”
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.